Methyl alcohol health effects

Toxicity and health effects Exposure to vapor of methyl alcohol causes irritation to the mucous membranes. Toxic effects are exerted upon the nervous system, particularly the optic nerve. Once absorbed into the body, it is very slowly eliminated. Symptoms of overexposure include but are not limited to headache, drowsiness, nausea, vomiting, blurred vision, blindness, drunkenness, insomnia, abdominal pains, coma, and death. Oral ingestion of large amounts of methyl alcohol has caused nausea, giddiness, and loss of consciousness in humans. ... 

One of the first and most important uses of denatonium henzoate was as an additive to methanol (methyl alcohol wood alcohol). Although ethanol (ethyl alcohol grain alcohol) has some harmful effects on humans, especially if taken in excess, it is relatively safe to drink in beer, wine, and other alcoholic drinks. By contrast, methanol is highly toxic. Anyone who accidentally or intentionally consumes methanol is likely to experience serious health effects, including death. By adding a small amount of denatonium benzoate to methanol, consumers are discouraged—and usually prevented—from drinking the substance. 

With TEL no longer avcdlable as an octane booster, chemists tried to find other compounds to replace it. Aromatic compounds were effective in enhancing the octane value, but they were discovered to be serious health hazards. Recently, methyl alcohol, tert-butyl alcohol, and methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) have been used 2is octane boosters. 

Industrial poisoning. The production of silicone products uses substances harmful for human health. These are inorganic substances (ammonia, chlorine, sodium and potassium hydroxides, sulfuric and hydrochloric acids, hydrogen chloride) and organic compounds of various types, such as hydrocarbons (methane, benzene and its homologues), chlorine derivatives (methyl- and ethylchloride, chlorobenzene), alcohols (methyl, ethyl, n-butyl, hydrosite), acetone, pyridine, etc. The information about their toxicity, explosion hazard, effect on human body, as well as maximum allowable concentrations of gases and vapours in the air at workplace can be found in special references.(Ryabov 1970). A comprehensive description of silicone substances is given in Table 29. 

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